Psalm 1 ~ Blessed [is] the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight [is] in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. The ungodly [are] not so: but [are] like the chaff which the wind driveth away. Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.

Luke 4:18 ~ The Spirit of the Lord [is] upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised.

Jeremiah 17:5-8 ~ Thus saith the LORD; Cursed [be] the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the LORD. For he shall be like the heath in the desert, and shall not see when good cometh; but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, [in] a salt land and not inhabited. Blessed [is] the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and [that] spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.

I still remember, clear as glass, laying out at my favorite spot on Fort Lauderdale beach.

It was April 2007, and as is customary for me to do on my days off, I was there to get my tan on.

I was elated! . . . once again I found myself a giddy little girl so in love with the very thought of being there–my most favorite place on earth. For me, the thrill of being at the beach is an excitement like none other.

There’s not much else this world can offer me that brings me the joy, peace, and level of relaxation that I get from a day at the beach.

To be in the presence of God’s beautiful creation is immensely rewarding in and of itself. His gifts of sun, breeze, sand, sky, water, vitamin D–grouped together with the wonderful scent of ocean air and tanning lotion are all worth the escape from the harsh reality of this world’s day-to-day mundane life.

While there, I find myself reading a book or my Bible, journaling, listening to my iPod, or just plain ol’ closing my eyes and taking a quick snooze.

The ocean didn’t interest me much that day, as I was more concerned with “working” on my tan. (It’s very hard work, you know!)

In that beautiful setting of huge, white cotton ball clouds set against a baby blue sky . . . I relish in the happiness that besets me.

The sun beamed down baking me to that just-oh-so-right perfect color. As the sweat beads rolled off of me, I realized that I was not only in all my glory, but that He was there–with me.

In awe of God’s presence, I can remember thinking about how much He LOVED me. I was immersed in my thoughts, and the tears of joy welled up as they sat on the ledges of my eyelids.

I sat up on my towel with chin pointed skyward, eyes closed, knees to chest, arms stretched behind me, and it was right then and there that the power of his love and his presence hit me.

I felt as if He leaned down from Heaven and planted His warm tender kisses on my forehead. Yes! I knew He delighted in how much JOY I found in His IMMENSE love for me.

I love the beach with the everso HOT sun beaming down on me , as my Loving Father gently and tenderly plants His sweet, sweet kisses on my forehead . . . it reminds me that life is going to be alright.

Take time to relish in His love for you, and see if you can get that special feeling of swallowing sunshine!

To know Him is to Love Him!

~♥~

Truly the light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to behold the sun!

Ecclesiastes 11:7

~♥~

~God’s Gracie Girl~ ✿

♥ •.¸.•´♥ ¯`♥(❀◠‿◠)♥.¸¸.•´¯`•.♥

Psalm 113:3 ~ From the rising of the sun unto the going down of the same the LORD’S name is to be praised.

Psalm 113:4 ~ The LORD is high above all nations, and his glory above the heavens.

Ecclesiastes 1:9 ~ The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.

Psalm 74:16 ~ The day is thine, the night also is thine: thou hast prepared the light and the sun.

Psalm 84:11 ~ For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.

Isaiah 30:26 ~ Moreover the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days, in the day that the LORD bindeth up the breach of his people, and healeth the stroke of their wound.

Two sick young men from Lewistown, Pennsylvania, both with a perverted sense of humor, post his severely damaged, unrecognizable face on a facebook profile page they proudly created for the sole purpose of poking fun at him. They think they’re funny. They are not.

May the Lord have mercy on their souls . . .

Sadly . . . sick minds laugh at his picture. They load it on to their phones only to proudly show it off to others to prove they’re someone, in that they’ve got the “real deal”. His face—completely gone.

WHAT THE YOU-KNOW-WHAT IS WRONG WITH PEOPLE?

He was someone’s JOY when he was born. A cute baby, sitting in his high chair eating his baby food, as his mother lovingly fed him by spoon. He cutely crawled, until he learned to walk, and his parents were so proud to have him as their son. He is someone’s brother, cousin, father, friend.

HE IS GOD’S CREATED WORKMANSHIP.

HE WAS FEARFULLY AND WONDERFULLY MADE.

He grew up with his siblings, in a nice neighborhood. Attended a very prestigious high school in lower Manhattan, and received honors for he had an above average IQ of 129.

He is now a man without a face.

His name?

R O N A L D P O P P O

Somewhere in life, he encountered pain, loss, and grief.

For 30 years, he endured the harshness that comes from being a homeless person, living on the streets. Daily surviving heartless people hurling insults at him as they drive by, screaming at him to get a job, looking down their prideful noses at him as if he is somehow less than . . .

He is a person—homeless or not—God loves him, and we should all do the same.

He matters.

People harshly pass by him as if he is nothing, all the while refusing to reach into their wallets, purses, and deep pockets to retrieve and to assist with a measly contribution of a one-dollar bill to help him get a bottle of water, a burger, or a beer if he so chose.

Little to no kindness in their hearts, sadly they refuse him, ridicule him, and revile him.

Despite his life’s circumstances, and behind the gruesome damage done to his face, therein lies a soul, a spirit, a life—loved and created by our Dearest Lord.

It is only by the Grace of God that I am who I am . . .

But by the Grace of God, I am what I am . . .
~ 1 Corinthians 15:10 ~ ♥

On Saturday, May 26, his entire world would forever change.

Enter in Rudy Eugene . . .

Another lost soul, Rudy Eugene’s car had broken down, and he was on foot. He wandered through the streets of a hot Miami morning, while tearing his clothes off and throwing them into traffic.

As he came upon a sleeping RONALD POPPO, lying in the shade on a hot sidewalk off of Miami’s MacArthur Causeway, he stripped Mr. Poppo of his clothing from the waist down, and began savagely beating him. Rudy chewed his face off beyond recognition. Mr. Poppo’s face is one-fifth intact, with 75 to 80% of his face completely and forever gone. No nose, no mouth, his left eye forever missing. His face now consists of his right eye and chin only.

While the event was MOST CERTAINLY DEMONIC in nature, Rudy was known to always have read his Bible, quote scripture, and was nicknamed, “Preacher Man”. It is reported that he went everywhere with his Bible tucked in his arm. Why, he even attended Bible Study, as recently as Thursday, May 24. You see, Rudy Eugene was known to have loved the Lord.

He, too, was someone’s young bouncy baby boy, full of joy as he entered this world.

Dismally, he is now gone. His loss of life is nothing short of the sadness that pours through many a heart than that for an unconscious Mr. Poppo. Although Mr. Poppo is alive, he is likely to suffer the rest of his life—the psychological damage being the worst of his pain from injuries sustained.

I cannot even begin to imagine what Mr. Eugene’s life would have been like if he had lived to face his fate of a jury trial, prison, etc. He, too, would have had to live with the psychological damage for the rest of his young life. He was only 31—a spry little one-year old the year Mr. Poppo went homeless.

The doctors assigned to treat Mr. Poppo are doing everything they possibly can to reconstruct his face as he lies alone in a hospital room—unconscious. They gather together to discuss and plan their next course of action, in a room full of their gifts from our Lord—gifts of intelligence, wisdom, college degrees from various medical schools, and decades-long of combined years of experience.

Facebook pages have been set up in support of this tender man who was so gruesomely harmed and damaged beyond recognition. There are prayer groups, and pages set up for donations towards his medical care, of which could run as high as $200,000.

If you are like me, one who has a tender heart for these men, and would like to make a donation to help with the costs of Mr. Poppo’s medical care, click on this link: Give Forward – Ronald Poppo Recovery

While there is no telling how long he will lie in critical condition before they can begin the work necessary to reconstruct his precious face, they fear infection might perhaps set in, as the germs from the mouth of Mr. Eugene are likely to spread germs and bacteria.

The earth spins, people go on about their lives, while this poor man lies unconscious in a hospital bed all alone–injured beyond recognition. Who of you care enough to stop for five minutes of your day to pray for this man? His name—RONALD POPPO.

Would you also mind keeping Mr. Rudy Eugene’s family and friends in vigilant prayer as they try to find the peace, comfort, and answers as they sort through the piecing together of the shocking, horrific news on the unexpected loss of their loved one.

~ Torn pages of his Bible, strewn about . . . the remaining pages of his intact Bible lie flapping and lightly flowing in the soft, gentle breeze alongside his lifeless body and a severely damaged Mr. Poppo . . . it is a scene no movie producer could have better scripted. ~

. . . THE LORD BE WITH YOU ALL. ~♥

But whoso hath this world’s good, and seeth his brother have need,

and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?

~ 1 John 3:17 ~

♥

Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of theworld:

he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

~ John 8:12 ~

~ ♥ ~

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities,

Romans 8:16-17: “The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.”

A blog reaching out to victims of abuse and others in need, providing insight about abuse, hope for the future, and guidance to see THE LIGHT that lead Secret Angel out of the darkness of her own abusive situation and helped her to not only survive but to overcome.